Awakening the Twin Statues
The main monster appearing on the 22nd floor was a dragon-type beast called the Earth Dragon.
Wingless and with poor eyesight, it boasted monstrous power and stamina as a brute-force charging monster.
Moreover, it had elemental resistances based on its scale color, making it one of the trickiest foes around.
Thud!
"Whoa. This thing's tough as hell."
Carpe had just taken down one Earth Dragon.
It was the third one he'd encountered since entering the 22nd floor.
"Whew. But the patterns are starting to feel familiar now."
As Cheonma had warned, the 22nd floor wasn't easy even for Carpe.
The first Earth Dragon had taken him over 30 minutes.
Of course, the next one was down to 20 minutes, and this latest one to 15.
You're fighting alone, so of course it's tough. You've got a ton of summons—why do you love going solo so much?
"'Cause it's more fun that way!"
Sigh.
"Well, I'm satisfied now. From here on, we'll fight together."
Once he started bringing his summons along, each Earth Dragon fell in under five minutes.
Carpe steadily progressed up the tower, felling them one by one.
And at some point, he reached a new terrain feature.
"Oh? This is a recovery spring."
In one corner of a wide clearing sat a transparent spring.
It was large enough for five or six people to bathe in at once.
Bubbles rose from the center, as if water was welling up from the bottom.
First objective reached. Take a drink first. It'll fully restore your HP and MP.
"Oh yeah, that's what a recovery spring's for."
Full recovery was the unwritten rule for dungeon springs!
Carpe pulled an empty bottle from his inventory and approached the spring.
He filled it partway and chugged it down.
A refreshing chill spread through his chest, and a notification appeared.
HP/MP fully restored.
All harmful effects removed.
"Whoa, this effect is killer. If these were everywhere, climbing the tower would be a breeze."
Not by a long shot. Recovery springs spawn randomly, except on a few fixed floors.
And this 22nd floor was one where it spawned fixed.
Cheonma nodded, as if the memory had just clicked.
Dretsch was spot on. I'd forgotten which floor had the fixed recovery spring—it was 22.
"Is the recovery spring that important?"
Yeah. Essential for drawing out the hidden piece... Hey! Don't dive in just yet—don't even think about jumping in!
"Ahem. You could've said so sooner. Now I feel like an idiot..."
Carpe had dipped his knees in the spring but sheepishly pulled back.
You didn't give me time to... Just fill the empty bottle quietly. That's all you need.
"Really?"
Carpe filled the bottle again and stowed it in his inventory. A notification popped up.
Spring water removed from the recovery spring loses its effect.
"Huh? It's fine? It just turns into plain water."
That's normal. If it kept its effect in a bottle, everyone would bring empties and make cheat potions.
"Ah, yeah, that makes sense."
It's the water itself that matters, not the effect. Just grab the water.
"Got it."
Carpe nodded and pressed on up the tower.
"Wind Cutter!"
"Grroooaaar!"
Thud!
Carpe methodically took down each Earth Dragon that appeared.
How much time passed like that?
"Huh? We're done already?"
Before he knew it, he'd reached the entrance to the next floor.
He'd cleared the 22nd floor.
"What about the Magic King's clue? I scoured this floor... Is there a secret passage?"
Of course there is. Right there.
Cheonma pointed to the entrance to the 23rd floor.
"Huh? You mean the clue's on the next floor..."
No. Not that. The things standing next to it.
"Next to it? Oh... yeah, the entrances are different from the ones before."
Unlike the previous floors Carpe had cleared, massive statues flanked the entrance to the 23rd floor.
Right. From floor 21 to 30, the entrances have these twin statues.
"And those statues are the hidden piece?"
Exactly. Though most people don't know it yet.
RaSe was packed with countless hidden pieces.
There were so many that finding a user who'd experienced even one wasn't hard.
Most of those hidden pieces aren't like your No-Conscience Balance Explosion Freebie—they're just decently good.
But good was good. Good things stayed good.
Gamers couldn't help but get excited at "hidden piece," and once you'd found one, everything in the world started looking suspicious.
That rock has a weird shape... Maybe digging under it reveals a hidden piece?
This tree's leaning the wrong way. Definitely a treasure hint!
Any unusual structure or terrain sparked suspicion.
You just tried diving into the spring earlier.
"Lake bottoms are hidden piece classics!"
Exactly that kind of suspicion. About these twin statues.
Why are there twin statues only between floors 20 and 30?
Such suspicious objects... Something's gotta be hidden.
Once we pass floor 30, we can't check anymore. Gotta uncover the secret now!
That's why any player who'd visited the Red Tower at least once always inspected the twin statues.
"...Yeah, I'd do the same."
No one's figured it out yet, though.
Eight months after RaSe's launch, the twin statues remained shrouded in mystery.
Many had concluded there was no hidden piece.
There is one. But the conditions are kinda bullshit.
First, it only triggered when climbing solo. Parties did nothing, no matter what.
90% of Red Tower climbers partied up, so 90% were filtered out right there.
Pull out the spring water you bottled earlier. That's condition two.
"Got it."
Drip some on each statue's lips. About three seconds.
"...Pardon?"
Carpe glanced back at Cheonma, who nodded knowingly.
I get that reaction. I made the same face when I first heard. But it's real.
"Who the hell figured this out? People are wild."
With 500 million players, weirdos exist.
"Impressive."
Carpe praised the discoverer's ingenuity as he approached the twin statues.
"Wait a sec."
Up close, he realized the statues looked familiar.
"This... Drech?"
Huh. Yeah, looks like it. When the Magic King built the tower, he modeled them after himself.
"Drech had a twin?"
"No, my lord. These statues likely symbolize the Magic King's specialties."
"Ah..."
Tina was right.
Though called twins, they weren't identical.
The faces matched, but their armaments differed.
One wore light armor like a martial artist.
The other a baggy robe with a staff, like a mage.
"Like you, my lord, the Magic King was a Fist Mage. A heavenly martial body reaching mastery in both realms."
"I know. Mirage showed me."
"Yeah. Drech strong. But the one I recreated was super weak."
Memories of the elf forest still surfaced sometimes.
The Servant Lord's fragment and Mirage's Magic King transformation—it was the coolest fight Carpe had ever seen.
"Wait. Thinking back makes me uneasy."
Carpe wasn't the quickest, but he wasn't slow either.
He could guess what feeding these statues would unleash.
"Bro. Feeding them wakes the statues for a fight, right?"
Spot on. Gamers like you get it.
"How tough? If it's Servant Lord fragment level, we might lose."
Not that bad. I'd have stopped you. Hmm. Let's see.
Cheonma scanned Carpe and his summons.
Your current power should handle it. Not a guaranteed win, but good odds.
"Whew. Not easy, huh? Alright. Deep breaths first."
"Kyuu kyuu kyuit!"
"My lord, Mukhyang and I stand ready. On the La Mancha you bestowed, I swear to drive my spear into that smug face."
"...Y-yeah. Don't overdo it."
"My thanks for your concern."
Tina burned with more zeal than ever.
What exactly had happened between her and past Drech?
A legend to fight! My blood boils! Though as an undead, I have no blood, heh!
"Gillian. Your dad jokes suck."
Umhat hat! Gotta research more the little doll lady'll like. You'll think of it every bedtime soon!
"...Master. I'm tired. Can we skip the fight?"
Gillian matched Tina's enthusiasm, while Mirage lazed in sloth mode by contrast.
"Everyone seems ready. Let's start."
Carpe gripped the water bottle and approached the statues.
Oh, FYI, the first guy poured it in their mouths. Later found out regular pouring works. Guy, obviously.
"...Thanks for the fact I'd rather die not knowing."
Carpe shot a glare at the chuckling Cheonma and poured normally.
First the martial Drech, then the mage Drech.
G-g-g-grind!
Event Boss '??? Statue' awakens from its long slumber!
'??? Statue' tests your power!
"Tch. No freebie this time."
As Magic King's heir, he'd hoped for a "Welcome, master" free pass. No such luck.
Whoosh!
The martial Drech charged at Carpe with blinding speed, swinging a fist.
And so the twin statues raid began.